Tendring District Council (TDC) will be merged with Colchester City Council and Braintree District Council to form a new local authority in two years’ time.
The move to create what will be called North East Essex Council follows the government’s decision to divide the county – which currently has 15 councils – into five (pictured above).
Shadow elections will be held in May 2027, with councillors elected for an initial five-year term to cover the transition process. The new authorities are expected to become operational in April 2028, provided the proposals get parliamentary approval.
The new authorities will have responsibility for delivering all services in one area including waste collections, planning, adult social care, highways, children’s services and more. The government’s intention is to simplify councils’ structures so that they work better, and make it easier for residents to access and navigate services.
TDC leader Mark Stephenson welcomed the announcement, particularly as the council’s preferred model for North East Essex has selected.
“TDC will now step up our collaborative work with all partners across Greater Essex to deliver this change to best serve the interests of our communities, including the people of Tendring, and to ensure this process happens in a smooth way as possible with minimal disruption to the public,” he added.
Essex County Council (ECC) had pushed for the county to be divided into three unitaries, and in response to the choice of five, its leader Kevin Bentley said: “It is my view that the government has chosen the wrong option for the people of Essex.”
He claimed that it would take the five councils 50 years to pay the bill for reorganisation, but gave no indication of what the payback time would have been had the three council option been chosen.
“The government set out criteria for the new councils on fragmentation, sustainability of services and the ability to withstand financial shocks. The justification for their decision is thin,” he said, and suggested that ECC would be “looking to legally challenge” the govenment’s choice.
